• Tech Help

  • Using TracFone on a not certified by Verizon phone

I have a TracFone LTE SIM card in service however I am not able to use it in a fully unlocked 4G phone or a 4G Galaxy tablet.
I spoke to TracFone for many many hours what I've come out is that TracFone needs a Verizon certified phone to use LTE services.
Therefore I will not be able to use my data even though I have full service bars and it says 4G on top.
I also have a Verizon SIM card and that works in both the phone and the tablet. I have also tried US Mobile and that also works in both the phone and tablet. What I don't understand is why when it comes to TracFone do they need you to have a fully certified by Verizon phone?
If anyone knows anyway around this I've tried every APN setting and every hidden setting that I could think of.

    Camry Maybe because Verizon actually owns Tracfone. But maybe not. What phone are you trying this on?

      Camry Have you tested the TracFone LTE SIM in a Verizon certified phone/device? It could be an issue with the SIM card rather than the devices.

      I'd imagine TracFone would have already informed you of this, but are you 100% sure the TracFone LTE SIM is a Verizon network one? It could also be an AT&T or T-Mobile network SIM and maybe those devices aren't AT&T certified, for example.

        I've had this problem even before TracFone was baught out by Verizon.
        And yes I am 100% sure that I am using the LTE SIM card. And I currently use it in an LG classic and it works perfectly.
        The phone I have been trying to make it work in is a unihertz jelly 2 (which is an unlocked 4G LTE phone). My Verizon and US Mobile SIM cards work in the jelly 2 but not the TracFone.

          Camry Do you call TracFone before moving the sim to the Jelly? They officially require you to call, and I've had situations where I've switched the sim without calling, and forever my data stopped working. I think maybe [Login to see the link] is dealing with that issue

            Camry the jelly isn't officially compatible with Verizon

              Camry After Googling around, I found two possible solutions, as apparently some others have had similar issues, as indeed the Jelly 2 isn't Verizon certified.

              Whatever phone you activated the TracFone SIM with originally, try putting the SIM back in that phone, and let it register on the network, maybe make a call just to verify it's working. Now, WITHOUT turning that phone off (or at least try pulling the battery without turning it off the normal way), put the SIM into the Jelly 2 and see if it works.

              If that fails (this should also be a more permanent solution), you can trick the network by changing the IMEI on the Jelly 2 to a Verizon certified one. May or may not work with one that isn't already registered on the Verizon network. However, I would make sure to never have both phones on at the same time if you do want to use both on the Verizon network, unless you want to be kicked off.

              Dial*#*#08#*#* to enter the "IMEI Tool" hidden menu and change the SIM IMEI.

              Source:
              [Login to see the link]

              On most phones, changing the IMEI isn't so easy, but you're in luck here.

              Furthermore, if you need another Verizon certified IMEI to use, so you don't kind of "sacrifice" a phone you already have, you could try sourcing a cheap broken Verizon or TracFone VoLTE compatible phone on eBay or similar. Or maybe you already have one? So long as it doesn't have a bad ESN/IMEI, any random VoLTE compatible Verizon or TracFone (Verizon network) branded (or unlocked Verizon certified) phone should work. E.g., an old broken Verizon LG G2 should work.

              P.S. If you find yourself switching/transferring TracFone SIM/accounts around, TracFone Verizon SIMs can be reused after deactivation, if you didn't already know. Might save you having to buy another SIM kit.

                  cross_stix Great Instructions BTW.

                  Hmm... But he is using an LG Classic Flip with the Sim Card stuck under the battery. So it wouldn't be possible to switch the sim card without power off.

                      Biden2020prez Thanks, I try to make things as understandable/thorough as possible. And oh yeah, that's true.

                      Camry If using the Classic Flip or a similar SIM card behind the battery phone, then I guess just make sure the phone is connected to the network but idle. Then pull the battery without turning the phone off via the PWR button. I've done this a few times on accident with the Classic Flip, didn't seem to hurt anything.

                      *edited previous post*

                          • FlippyLevel 6 - Platinum Elite Member

                            • Post #10
                            • Edited

                            Its just something to do with TracFone and their heavy-handed control on what devices you're using (even before Verizon acquired them. They're really the solution for dummies including a phone in a box and all you need just to activate in one easy step, that's part of what they're selling point is- Supposedly to make sure you're getting a great experience but really just end up driving people crazy. To me it seems like so much of their systems are automated that they don't even give the representatives the ability to change them, so something like this may not even be able to be helped by getting on the phone with them.

                            Biden2020prez It sounds a little jury-rigged, but maybe he can try connecting the battery with two wires to the terminals so that he will still be able to access the SIM underneath.

                            And honestly, [Login to see the link], what is motivating you to stick with Tracfone at all?
                            P.S. if you do need a verizon compatible IMEI I can provide one for you.

                                Flippy

                                Flippy It sounds a little jury-rigged, but maybe he can try connecting the battery with two wires to the terminals so that he will still be able to access the SIM underneath.

                                I am not so good with hardware lol. but sometimes just plugging in the phone without a battery is enough to power it. not always

                                    Flippy The only reason I am sticking to TracFone is because I have the ACP program and TracFone is the only one that has the best free plan that uses Verizon towers

                                      cross_stix thank you for all your time and research. I've actually tried to switch the IMEI a while ago using that code. it only helps to enable SMS/MMS and in some cases to make the phone usable for phone calls however my data still does not work.

                                          Camry You're welcome. So let me get this straight. Has voice been working at all since mid January this year? Does sms, mms, and voice require the faked IMEI to work or do they work without it?

                                              cross_stix without the fake IMEI I can make a few phone calls and send SMS and MMS for a few minutes, and then they suddenly stop and on a call I get a message "we gave detected that this is not the same phone originally activated..."
                                              When I use the fake IMEI, the calls and SMS/MMS work perfectly.
                                              What I don't understand the most is while I cannot use any data, I can send any amount of MMS even though it uses data!

                                                  Camry Yes, that seems odd. What about data with the original IMEI, does that work? Furthermore, what SIM are you trying to use in the phone? Is it a SIM that originally came in a TracFone branded phone, or a BYOP SIM? Try the opposite of whatever type of SIM you have.

                                                  In addition, something I've heard with T-Mobile MVNOs is that old SIM cards will still let you connect to 2G, whereas newer ones will kick you off after a short period. Is this SIM card relatively new? I wonder if you sourced a new old stock SIM card, if that might help.

                                                  Furthermore, regarding APNs. Have you tried the four listed here? (I know it's USMobile site, but try anyway): [Login to see the link]

                                                  Lastly, maybe it's an IMS issue, assuming data is working with the original IMEI before getting kicked. What kind of phone is the cloned/fake IMEI from? If it's Qualcomm SoC or newer/older than Android 10-11 phone, try instead finding a certified phone that uses a MediaTek SoC and Android 10/11, like the Jelly 2.

                                                  P.S. Have you tried a factory reset, especially via hidden menu or recovery mode, if the phone has that option?

                                                    BH i finally got it to work!! Thank you to all that took the time to help.
                                                    The way I got it to work was too switch both IMEI numbers (it's a dual sim) and the MEID, to the phone that the SIM card was originally activated in. Once TracFone had this device listed as the original device I was able to then change the APN settings and then the data started working.

                                                      7 days later

                                                      Camry Late reply, I should have mentioned the MEID change possibility being required in addition earlier, but I seem to have forgotten. Anyway, glad you figured it all out and got it working 🙂.